October 30, 2016

What a week! Have you realized how fast this month has been? It has been so fun. Myyy goodness! I feel that the Plan of Salvation will have deeper meaning to me in my life. I love the vision we can have for our lives when we are in the temple.. that place is somewhere I want to share with my family. I loved working in the spirit. While in the tents I often had a prayer in my heart I would have the spirit.. what a difference it makes when we rely on the spirit & help others recognized the spirit in their lives. In preach my gospel it says...

“The light of Christ is just what the words imply: enlightenment, knowledge, and an uplifting, ennobling, persevering influence that comes upon mankind because of Jesus Christ.. every single person I talked to felt that Spirit. Just like the question many would ask us... why is there no crosses in the temple? I know Christ lives! His voice is SO real. That's another thing I've learned so much about and I keep trying to put it in my mind. discouragement and fear is a trick Satan uses. Is that how a Loving Father in Heaven would talk to his daughter or son? He will love and correct but never discourage us. Fearing God is not wanting to miss out living with him in Heaven. (The real party we all want to be) So repentance is so cool. I love it! & prayer does amazing things in my life as I face challenges and when I just need to feel connected with Him. When is the last time you sincerely prayed? Felt the spirit? I really know as we recognize the voice of our Loving Heavenly Father in our lives & keep the commandments we will be happy.

The total count of souls who came to the temple was: 51,689. (I know I know. So many) Saturday was about 6,000. It was awesome! Leaving Sunday was really sad. The Coleman's are the greatest family. They were so extremely grateful to have us & so good to us. We felt so at home with them. I will miss their cat named Dave. I never knew I could like a cat so much! We sang Sisters in Zion with the Sisters in sacrament meeting. We had the greatest laughs with our roomies. We were feeling bitter sweet about the open house being done, excited to get back to New Canaan & the Pace's, but we loved the missionary work we were doing at the temple. It was perfect because when we got back, we had zone Conference in the morning and the focus was the spirit.. no matter where we serve, what our callings are in the church.. it's the spirit that matters most and when we feel the spirit we are happy. I think as missionaries we don't recognize the spirit with us all the time, but those meetings are just so powerful. President Smith Is always teaching repentance. I love him for changing my desires. There is a quote I love, Elder Packer shared this, some of his last words in a conference that were changed.

"The Atonement, which can reclaim each one of us, bears no scars. That means that no matter what we have done or where we have been or how something happened, if we truly repent, He has promised that He would atone. And when He atoned, that settled that. There are so many of us who are thrashing around, as it were, with feelings of guilt, not knowing quite how to escape. You escape by accepting the Atonement of Christ, and all that was heartache can turn to beauty and love and eternity."

I love that and I wanted to share it. Monday night we also were invited over to Sister Ohrn's home to have dinner with Sheryl. The same Sheryl who came to the temple. We talked about the temple a little and she talked a lot. We tried I think 4 times to teach the restoration..the first vision! we taught it earlier that day to the AP's and the spirit was strong.. and sometimes teaching moments just are difficult. Haha That's okay. She is so cute. We are really grateful she is open. She is angry at God right now. She's very confused so we definitely want her to be happy and feel his love. Tuesday we went to Waveny to serve. I guess Waveny is number one senior care center in the nation. It is such a fun place to serve. Sister Busby played the piano and we sang primary songs with them! It was so cute. Ah Jean and Francis and Gracie. So many funny woman. They crack me up!

I look forward to being in New Canaan and I hope to not take a day for granted as I put on my name tag each morning. I know my authority is real and it's the only way to help others through priesthood keys to get rid of feelings of guilt. And in turn feel peace. I'm grateful to be a missionary for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints!!

I wouldn't be a missionary without the fourteen year old Joseph Smith who went to a grove of trees to pray!!

October 19, 2016

I am completely in love with the fall here. It's unbelievable. If you want to come to Connecticut, now is about the prime time!! I feel that it's such a special place. Sister busby, Sister Holt, and Sister Morley and I walked this trail this morning and it was so fun to be with them in this beautiful place we are called to serve!!

I will make this brief. I am loving my time here at the temple. I am amazed each day at the beauty of it and the excitement each person has to come and see it.

I saw some of my favorite members this week. It was so great! I sat with the Lanier's in their tent. They look so happy and it is so neat to see their love grow of the temple. I also saw Jessica Vega who got her endowments. It's so cool to see people becoming and making important steps in their lives. We also sat down with Sheryl, Sister Orhn's friends she brought with her who we tracted into and she's ready to meet with us once we get back to New Canaan. She feels distant from God but said some prayers in the Celestial room she shared with us. She asked us, what more could I be doing? Great question Sheryl!! Looks like we'll have some work! Every night I am so exhausted and then we clean the temple and it's so peaceful.

October 12, 2016

I'm having such incredible experiences here! Open houses & open hearts, most definitely

The temple this week was wonderful. It was busy. There were about 5,000 people that came Saturday. I saw so many sweet members in the different wards I've served in. It's pretty fun to recognize so many people from all over New York and Connecticut, even Utah! Monday was a Jewish holiday so of course on the east coast school is out and so many families came! I am loving it and I have moments where I'm so grateful.I love watching the families that are in our tents. I've felt that he does care for our individual families. He does want want us to be together forever, that is how he intended them to be.

The questions people ask, have deepened my knowledge of the temple, Heavenly Father's plan and my feelings in the temple have increased my testimony and desire to be close to my Heavenly Father.

He really has shown us HOW WE CAN.

There is power to that primary song!

Monday the Smith family came up to Hartford and took us all out to dinner. They were so happy!We can tell they miss us and they expressed what a treat it was to be with us! Distance makes the heart grow founder! Ha!

The experiences are priceless. There was a huge flow of older men and woman that come through yesterday. Their questions are so broad and it is hard to remember the conversations afterwards because I feel the spirit helps so much, it takes over at times! I feel it. I feel joy and love for these people. I had two women in particular, Paulette & Irlene, ask me all sorts of things. They absolutely loved the temple. They understood more and more and I was able to say the first vision.They took 5 Book of Mormons! As I went to get them I felt to share testimony of the truth of that book. I invited them to do one thing! Be prayerful as they read the Book of Mormon to feel of the truth that is in it. I knew it would help them to feel the spirit in their lives. Irlene told me to come over once more as she was filling out her comment card and she put my name on it. Haha it was a wonderful experience!

I love hearing the way everyone feels right after coming to us from the sealing room. This boy we asked said he felt all negativity left behind and felt so positive it inspired him to do art! That's so cool! The Spirit can inspire us to do good continually. Mosiah 5:2. I have to trust that Heavenly Father cares about all his children and will bring this experience back into their lives at some future time. I love the temple, it is such a Holy place. It is our Lord and our Saviors house. The nights we get to clean inside are special nights.

I hope that I can always live in a way to invite that spirit of joy, love, peace, meekness into my life!

October 5, 2016

It is fall in Connecticut! This makes me happy. This temple just makes me smile. It is across from this huge corn field and it is special to look up at angel Moroni each day. The tours going on here have been amazing. Each person and family that goes through is touched by the spirit and beauty inside. The 1st day tours were open to the public they were expecting 2,400 and I think they went well over. Having people come all day is excited. There are 6 tent and we just rotate through out the day so days are long and repetitive, however, I have seen more people not of our faith been completely effected than I have my entire time in New York and Connecticut. So many grateful hearts!

One woman who I asked how her experience was in the temple said, "amazing! That is a Holy place." I felt to talk to this younger man who was in a wheel chair. His caregiver was feeding him. I asked him about himself and I was able to get to know him. There was another younger woman in a wheeler chair who was crying next to the Christos in the reception area. I didn't feel the need to talk with her. The Christos that stands in the center of the images and quotes about truths of the restored gospel reminds me who has died so they we can have peace and joy and live with our Heavenly Father once more someday. There is a feeling that carries with people once they walk out of the temple. Their hearts are softened. They understand more that this life is eternal. I hope when they see the crystals in the Celestial room they feel they can become clean and repent too.

From General Conference I loved a lot of talks. I love the one on how joy has everything to do with our focus. I also loved Elder Rasband's and had a neat experience relating to his experience. I cannot forget the spirit I have felt everyday as a missionary. I won't do it!!!

I love this scripture this week & I have felt a lot of joy, peace, and love from Jesus Christ's Atonement.

D & C 6: 36. Look unto me in every thought; doubt not, fear not. 37. Behold the wounds which pierced my side, and also the prints of the nails in my hands and feet; be faithful, keep my commandments, and ye shall inherit the kingdom of heaven. Amen.